'Bachelor' Host Chris Harrison Reacts to Chris & Whitney's Split: It's 'Sad'
It’s been a rough 24 hours for fans of The Bachelor and host Chris Harrison is right there with you.
Bachelor Chris Soules and Whitney Bischoffcalled off their engagement on Thursday, saying in a joint statement that they “will continue to be supportive friends.” Harrison sat down with Home & Family co-hosts Mark Steines and Cristina Ferrare in an interview airing Friday on the Hallmark Channel to give his take on Soules and Bischoff’s split.
In the interview first posted by Us Weekly, Harrison was a little bummed out by the news.
WATCH: Chris Soules and Whitney Bischoff on How They'd Beat 'The Bachelor' Curse
“I was really sorry to hear this morning that Chris and Whitney had ended their engagement,” he said, adding that Soules competed on Dancing With the Stars and later moved back to the farm in Iowa. “I thought that they had given it a go and were going back together but apparently not.”
“I wish them the best,” Harrison said.
Harrison revealed that he had been in contact with Soules via text messages on Thursday, lending his support as a friend.
PHOTOS: Whitney Bischoff Joins Chris Soules on His Iowa Farm
“I will admit I’ve texted Chris on and off today just to let him know I wish them both well and they’re both good friends of mine and if there’s anything I can do or to help with,” he said. “I do get involved and that’s one of the things that’s odd about the show. I know it’s television and there are silly things that go on but to me they are real people. They were just two kids who were hopefully going to get married and they’re not now and that’s sad.”
“They’re still people going through a breakup and so it’s still tough,” Harrison added.
Soules, 33, and Bischoff, 29, got engaged during the season 19 finale of The Bachelor that aired March 9, and earlier this month, the pair was seen enjoying country life on Soules’ Arlington, Iowa farm.
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More recently Bischoff had been seen spending time with ex-Bachelor contestant Becca Tilley and current Bachelorette Kaitlyn Bristowe, sparking rumors that there may have been trouble in the romance department. Bischoff and Soules were engaged for six months.
Only half a dozen couples are still together out of the 30 seasons of The Bachelor and The Bachelorette, a fact Bischoff and Soules were well aware of when they spoke with ET after the finale.
“I think that it is important to not focus on that and to focus on us as a couple,” Bischoff said.
“We didn’t go on this show for anything but for finding someone and our No. 1 focus now is to continue that relationship that we developed on the show,” Soules added.
Looks like The Bachelor curse is still in full swing.